Chemoenzymatic cascade catalysis has emerged as a revolutionary tool for streamlining traditional retrosynthetic disconnections, creating new possibilities for the asymmetric synthesis of valuable chiral compounds. Here we construct a one-pot concurrent chemoenzymatic cascade by integrating organobismuth-catalyzed aldol condensation with ene-reductase (ER)-catalyzed enantioselective reduction, enabling the formal asymmetric α-benzylation of cyclic ketones. To achieve this, we develop a pair of enantiocomplementary ERs capable of reducing α-arylidene cyclic ketones, lactams, and lactones. Our engineered mutants exhibit significantly higher activity, up to 37-fold, and broader substrate specificity compared to the parent enzyme. The key to success is due to the well-tuned hydride attack distance/angle and, more importantly, to the synergistic proton-delivery triade of Tyr28-Tyr69-Tyr169. Molecular docking and density functional theory (DFT) studies provide important insights into the bioreduction mechanisms. Furthermore, we demonstrate the synthetic utility of the best mutants in the asymmetric synthesis of several key chiral synthons.

Today, finding a low cost, efficient, functional and reliable solution for controlling smart lighting systems has become topic of many research groups and industry. In this study, a multi-functional wafer level package (WLP) for phosphor-based white LED system has been designed and manufactured using 7-mask BiCMOS process. This package integrates 4 high power blue LED dies with a temperature sensor and a blue selective light sensor for monitoring system performance. Each sensor has been designed, characterized and calibrated to be part of the smart monitoring unit. An interdigitated power transistor and a 4-bit flash analog-to-digital converter (ADC) were also monolithically integrated with sensors’ readout and extra controlling functions.